Vegetarian Cheese, which uses non-animal rennet, is
freely available in the UK and used in restaurants such as Pizza Hut..

Trader Joe's website that explains the three kinds of
rennet, which are animal, vegetable, and microbial, the latter two of which are acceptable
for lacto-vegetarians. This means, however, that if you want to eat cheese, please discern
and only eat those cheeses that are vegetarian  ignorance is not bliss.

The first step in cheese making is to separate milk into
curds and whey.

Curds are milk solids that consist of casein (a
protein), fat, water and some carbohydrate (milk sugar, or lactose). Whey is a liquid of
yellowish colour that contains water, milk sugar (lactose), and whey proteins.

Separation, or coagulation, of the milk requires two
stages. First, bacterial cultures and enzymes are added to reduce the pH and prepare the
milk for the addition of rennet.

Rennet is added after cultures and enzymes are used.
Rennet is the dried commercial extract of rennin, the enzyme that is responsible for most
of the milk coagulation that takes place.

Traditionally, rennet is derived from animals. However,
some vegetable juices and extracts are used as rennin, and modern advances in science have
enabled micro-organisms to produce enzymes that mimic animal rennet. Hence,
"rennet" can come from animals, vegetables, or micro-organisms.

All three types are found in Trader Joe's cheeses.

ANIMAL

Obtained from the stomach region of a suckling mammal,
usually a calf or lamb. As mentioned, this is the traditional way to make cheese; nearly
all European cheeses use animal rennet.

VEGETABLE

Derived from plants, these enzymes are extracted and
modified into a form similar to that of animal rennet. This is a less common form of
rennet, due to its expense, but some cheeses are traditionally made from this type of
rennet. This type of rennet is acceptable to loacto-vegetarians.

MICROBIAL

This is a common and less expensive rennet, made from
micro-organisms through a process of fermentation. Common micro-organisms include fungi
and bacteria. This type of rennet is also acceptable to lacto-vegetarians.

RENNET PRODUCTS

A= Animal, M= Microbial, N= None, V=
Vegetable

Cheese Product

Category

Asiago Bel
Gioiso

A

Blarney Irish

A

Blue Castello

A

Blue Creamy TJ

A

Blue Danish

A

Brie 60 %
Pepper Couronne

A

Brie 60% Martin
Coullet Garlic & Herb

A

Brie 62 %
Supreme

A

Brie 70 %
Belletoile

A

Brie Triple
Cream

A

Cheddar Aged
Slices

A

Cheddar
Canadian White

A

Cheddar
Tillamook Extra Sharp

A

Cheddar
Wisconsin Black Wax

A

Edam

A

English Stilton

A

Feta French

A

Feta in Oil

A

Garlic &
Herb

A

Gouda Holland
Smoked

A

Gouda Imported
Dutch Red Wax

A

Gouda Lite

A

Gruyere

A

Havarti Danish

A

Havarti Lite

A

Jarlsberg

A

Jarlsberg Lite

A

Jarlsberg
Smoked

A

Parmesan
Aurricchio

A

Parmesan
Reggiano

A

Pecorino Grated

A

Pecorino Romano

A

Pecorino
Shredded

A

Raclette

A

Romano/Parmesan
Blen

A

Roquefort

A

Swedish
Norgreve Emmenthaler

A

Swiss
Emmentaler

A

Swiss Madrigal
Baby French

A

Turunmaa
Havarti

A

Brie 60 % St.
Benoit

M

Cheddar Aged
Irish White

M

Cheddar McCadam
NY Sharp

M

Cheddar
Minnesota Aged

M

Chevre Log

M

Chevre Silver
Log

M

Chevre Vermont

M

Colby Jack

M

Colby Longhorn

M

Farmer's Cheese

M

Feta Domestic

M

Fontina
Domestic

M

Havarti Slices

M

Jack Hot Pepper
50% RdcdFat

M

Jack Sonoma
Lite

M

Jack with
Garlic 50% Rded Fat

M

Jack with Green
& Red Peppers

M

Lappi Part Skim

M

Lappizzarella
Shredded TJ

M

Mozzarella
Shredded

M

Mozzarella
Shredded Non Fat

M

Muenster 50 %
Reduced Fat

M

Non Fat Cheddar

M

Non Fat
Jalapeno Jack

M

Non Fat Swiss

M

Non Fat Tomato
Basil Jack

M

String Cheese
TraderJoe's

M

Swiss Alpine
Lace

M

Swiss Baby
Chalet Cheese

M

Swiss Finlandia
Lite (50%less Fat)

M

Boursin

N

Chavrie Goat
& Cheese

N

Cheddar New
Zealand

N

Cream Cheese

N

Mozzarella Non
Fat TJ

N

Ricotta, Whole
and Part Skim

N

Tofurella
Cheddar

N

Tofurella
Jalapeno Jack

N

Tofurella
Mozzarella

N

Blue Salmon
Valley

V

Cheddar Cabot
50% RdcdFat

V

Cheddar Cabot
Extra Sharp

V

Cheddar Cabot
Onion & Chive

V

Cheddar Cabot
Tomato Basil

V

Cheddar Cabot
w/Peppercorns

V

Cheddar
Cabot75%RdcdFat

V

Cheddar
California Mild

V

Gorgonzola,
Salmon Valley

V

Jack Monterey

V

Mozzarella

V

Muenster

V

Parmesan
Shredded

V

Provolone,
Sliced

V

Vegetation society Information Sheet Cheese &
Rennet

http://www.vegsoc.org/Info/cheese.html

Cheese is made by coagulating milk to give curds which
are then separated from the liquid, whey, after which they can be processed and matured to
produce a wide variety of cheeses. Milk is coagulated by the addition of rennet. The
active ingredient of rennet is the enzyme, chymosin (also known as rennin). The usual
source of rennet is the stomach of slaughtered newly born calves. Vegetarian cheeses are
manufactured using rennet from either fungal or bacterial sources. Advances in genetic
engineering processes means they may now also be made using chymosin produced by
genetically altered micro-organisms.

Manufacture

The exact processes in the making of cheese varies
between different varieties. However, all cheeses are made by essentially the same method.
Initially, the milk is usually pasteurised by heating at 72°C for 15 seconds to destroy
potentially harmful bacteria. The milk is then cooled to around 30°C and a starter
culture of lactic acid bacteria is added to help souring. These convert lactose into
lactic acid and help in the coagulation process. In addition, they also have a beneficial
effect on the eventual quality, taste and consistency of the cheese. Some cheeses are
coagulated entirely by lactic acid bacteria and are known as lactic-curd or acid-curd
cheeses. However, some cheeses sold as lactic-curd cheese may have had rennet added.

The next stage is the addition of rennet, containing the
enzyme chymosin. Rennet is usually sourced from the abomasum (fourth stomach) of newly
born calves. Here, chymosin aids the digestion and absorption of milk. Adult cows do not
have this enzyme. Chymosin is extracted by washing and drying the stomach lining, which is
then cut into small pieces and macerated in a solution of boric acid or brine at 30°C for
4-5 days. Pepsin may sometimes be used instead of chymosin. This is usually derived from
the abomasum of grown calves or heifers, or less commonly pigs. Pepsin may be mixed with
calf rennin. Rennet coagulates the milk, separating it into curds and whey. This is called
curdling.

Chymosin breaks down the milk protein casein to
paracasein which combines with calcium to form calcium paracaseinate, which separates out.
Milk fat and some water also becomes incorporated into this mass, forming curds. The
remaining liquid is the whey. The strength of different rennets can vary, though usual
strength varies between 1:10,000 and 1:15,000 i.e. one part rennin can coagulate 10-15,000
parts milk.

Other substances may also be added during the cheese
making process. Calcium chloride is added to improve the curdling process, and potassium
nitrate is added to inhibit contaminating bacteria. Dyes (e.g. annatto, beta-carotene),
Penicillium roquefortii mould spores to promote blue veining, or propionic acid bacteria
to encourage hole formation may be added.

Following curdling, the curds are cut and drained. The
size of the cut and the methods used vary for different cheese varieties. For soft
cheeses, the curds are sparingly cut and allowed to drain naturally. For hard cheeses, the
curds are heated and more whey is drained off. The curds are then cut into small pieces,
placed in vats and pressed.

After pressing, the curds may be treated in a number of
ways. They may be moulded into different shapes, soaked in a saltwater solution, be
sprayed with mould forming spores or bacteria, washed in alcohol, or covered in herbs.

The final stage is ripening, or maturation. This can
vary in length from 4 weeks to 2-3 years, depending on the type of cheese. During ripening
flavours develop, the cheese becomes firmer and drier, and special characteristics such as
holes, blue veining and crust formation occurs.

Vegetarian Cheeses

Vegetarian cheeses are made with rennets of non-animal
origin. In the past, fig leaves, melon, wild thistle and safflower have all supplied plant
rennets for cheese making. However, most widely available vegetarian cheeses are made
using rennet produced by fermentation of the fungus Mucor miehei. Vegetarian cheese may
also be made using rennet from the bacteria Bacillus subtilis or Bacillus prodigiosum.

Advances in genetic engineering techniques mean that
some vegetarian cheeses may now be made using chymosin produced by genetically engineered
micro-organisms. The genetic material (DNA) which encodes for chymosin is introduced into
a micro-organism which can then be cultured to produce commercial quantities of chymosin.
This is done by extracting genetic material from calf stomach cells which acts as a
template for producing the chymosin encoding DNA. This can then be introduced into the
micro-organism. Once the genetic material is introduced there is no further need for calf
cells. Alternatively, the chymosin encoding DNA can be bio-synthesised in the laboratory
without the use of calf cells.

The chymosin produced is identical to that produced by
calf stomach cells. The development of genetically engineered chymosin has been encouraged
by shortages and fluctuations in cost of rennet from calves. It's manufacturers claim that
genetically engineered chymosin will end the cheese making industry's reliance on the
slaughter of calves.

Chymosin encoding DNA has been introduced into three
different micro-organisms. These are the yeast Kluyveromyces lactis, the fungus
Aspergillus niger var awamori, and a strain of the bacteria Escherichia coli. All of these
have now been approved and cleared for use by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries &
Food. There is no legal requirement for manufacturers to state whether a genetically
engineered rennet has been used in the cheese making process.

Vegetarian cheeses are widely available in supermarkets
and health food stores. A wide variety of cheeses are now made with non-animal rennet and
labelled as suitable for vegetarians. No particular type of cheese is exclusively
vegetarian. Soft cheeses are as likely to be non-vegetarian as hard cheese.

Types of Cheese

The type of cheese produced depends on the milk used and
the cheese making process. The milk used may be full fat, semi-skimmed or fully skimmed,
this affecting the fat content of the cheese. It may be pasteurised or unpasteurised. Milk
from different animals and different breeds is important in determining the final flavour.
As well as cow's milk, cheese may be made from sheep or goat's milk.

Soft cheeses may be fresh or ripened. Fresh cheeses
include quark, cottage cheese and cream cheese. Ripened soft cheeses include Brie and
Camembert. Semi-soft cheeses include Stilton, Wensleydale and Gorgonzola. Hard cheeses
include Cheddar, Cheshire, and Gruyere. Parmesan is a strongly pressed, very hard, dry
cheese ripened for 2-3 years and then grated. Whey cheeses such as Ricotta are made as a
by-product of other cheeses from the whey removed during pressing. Processed cheeses are
either made with trimmings that are left over from the manufacture of other cheeses, or
from dried milk powder. Flavourings, colourings and other additives are used.

Nutritional Aspects

Cheese is a good source of protein, calcium, zinc, and
vitamin B12. However, full fat cheese is a major source of saturated fat which can lead to
raised serum cholesterol levels. Also, it contains no carbohydrate or fibre, and is a very
poor source of iron. Vegetarians, particularly new vegetarians, should be wary of too high
a consumption of cheese.